1861-S $20 Paquet XF45 PCGS....

Description

Choice XF 1861-S Paquet Double Eagle

1861-S $20 Paquet XF45 PCGS. In this age of easy and nearly
instantaneous communication, it is easy to forget that the flow of
information has become far more rapid in recent decades. Twenty
years ago, most of the people on the Internet today were not; just
over a half-century ago, the first United States presidential
debate was televised; and a generation before that, air mail was
not a routine fact of global commerce but a distinctive service
marked by danger and costly stamps. In 1861, the difference in
communication between America east of the Mississippi River and
west of it became especially apparent.
At the beginning of 1861, not only was transcontinental rail
incomplete, but not even transcontinental telegraph lines were
established. When the Philadelphia Mint discovered problems with
the Paquet reverse to the double eagle, it sent telegraphs on
January 5th to the branch mints in New Orleans and San Francisco.
New Orleans was connected directly to Philadelphia by telegraph,
and the Southern facility never released any Paquet-reverse
twenties.
For the main Mint's message to reach San Francisco, however, it had
to go to the western telegraph terminus at St. Joseph in extreme
western Missouri, whereupon it was sent along with other mail via
mounted courier--the legendary Pony Express. The message did not
reach San Francisco Mint Superintendent Charles Hempstead until
February 2nd, and he was forced to reply that he had struck and
released a number of Paquet twenties. In his words, "The amount
issued was $385,000." This translates to 19,250 pieces.
The Paquet twenties experienced considerable wear, and only a
relative handful survive today. Offered here is a Choice XF
example, yellow-gold with prominent orange overtones and a handful
of copper spots along the reverse rim. Scattered minor digs and
light, even wear contribute to the grade, but the coin offers
significant overall appeal. Population: 22 in 45, 30 finer
(11/10).From The Las Vegas Collection, Part Two.(Registry
values: N4719) (NGC ID# 269L, PCGS# 8936)